Seduced by the Fae

by Laxmi Hariharan

  I rear up from the bed, and my head spins.

  My chest ignites with pain; red and white sparks flash behind my eyes. My entire body trembles, and sweat beads at my temples. I collapse against the pillow. “Fuck, fuck, fuck.”

  I am as weak as a newborn.

  At this rate I will never get to her, not until it’s too late. I groan and fist my fingers into the mattress, and even that hurts. A ball of emotion clogs my throat.

  “The fuck am I going to do, Hawke?” I wheeze.

  “You are going to get better, that’s what you are going to do. You are no use to her dead.”

  “I am no use to her…period.”

  “Pull yourself together, brother.”

  I shake my head. “She was there with me. All I had to do was keep her inside the safe zone and send for you all, and I failed. Both. Because of my ego. Because I wanted time with her. Because I didn’t want anyone else to have her. Because…I…”

  “Love her?”

  My eyes snap open. “What? No.”

  Hawke rakes his hand through his hair. “Considering the state you are in over her loss, at how you went after her without a thought for your own safety, it’s logical to conclude that you are drawn to her.”

  “Lust.” I grit my teeth. "That’s all it is." Not. Bloody-fucking-hell, now I am arguing with myself?

  “Hmm.” Hawke scratches his chin. “That’s what I meant, obviously, and the fact that you mated her.”

  “The fuck you talking about?”

  “You going to deny it, asshole?”

  “No.” My breath stutters. “But how did you…?”

  "Let's see." He pretends to count on his fingers, “One. You are falling apart at the thought of her in danger. Two, you are wound up so fucking tightly I am sure you are going to explode. Three, you delayed calling us by an entire motherfucking twenty-four hours…”

  "Yeah, there is that." I drag my fingers through my hair.

  What had I been thinking? Not much.

  That’s the answer.

  My head and my cock had had only one agenda after I’d managed to get her away from the slavers. To mate her and bind her to me so no one else could have her.

  Oh, and she had pushed me, too.

  She had all but begged me to take her virginity—and you could have refused, bastard.

  But I hadn’t.

  I had ignored all of the warning signs, forgotten every single lesson the Fae Corps had ever taught me, and I had claimed her.

  “I failed her. Fuck.” I snarl and push up from the bed, and my entire body protests.

  My shoulder screams, my chest feels like someone stabbed me with a burning sword, and it’s not just because Boris had struck me there twice with his weird-shit energy bolts.

  “The fuck you doing?” Hawke grabs my shoulders, and I shake him off.

  I swing my legs over and try to stand, and almost topple over.

  Hawke rights me. “You are too weak to do anything but lie back and be pathetic, you piece of trash.”

  “Am not.”

  “What?”

  “Not weak.” I gasp as I struggle to stay conscious.

  “You are a piece of shit and you sure are pathetic…and newsflash, you are too bloody obstinate to back down when you should.”

  "What-fucking-ever."

  He lets go of me.

  I almost fall, then straighten my spine. “You need to let me out of here.” I take a step forward, and sweat erupts on my forehead. My heart gallops against my rib cage. Holy fucking hell.

  “You are in such bad shape, man, that if you walk to the door, it will be a miracle.”

  I take another step forward, and the world spins. I press my feet into the floor for purchase.

  “You are better off trying to recover first. Not doing her any favors, my man, by trying to hurt yourself this way.”

  A-n-d something inside of me snaps.

  I turn on him, struggling to remain upright. “And if someone were to take Charley away and leave you behind wounded, would you try to get to her at the first possible opportunity or would you just cry and cower under the sheets?”

  He frowns. “It’s not the same thing.”

  “Oh, wait,” I snarl. “I forgot that you are a coward. That’s why you prefer doing everything the right way, and waiting until you are stronger when your woman has been hurt.”

  “Shut the fuck up.” He cracks his fist forward. I manage to weave, and the breeze from his move wafts by me, and I sway –I fucking sway—from that near hit.

  "Oh wait." He snaps his finger. “I forgot that you are so weak that all I have to do is this.”

  He taps my forehead, and I collapse on the bed.

  “The fuck you doing, Hawke?” I huff out, then grab at my chest. The bloody thing hurts, and it shouldn’t.

  Not more than the pain that swells my jaw. For she’s not my mate. Not. My. Mate. Not yet. Not until I find her and make love to her and knot her again and…

  Hang on a fucking second. Love? You are talking about love? You, the perverted alpha-hole Fae, the one who needs pain to get off, is going to ask her to love you? You are going to ask her to give up her innocence completely and stay with you?

  “Doc.”

  Hawke’s voice reaches me, and I shove it aside.

  My head spins, and I grip the sheets in my fists so tightly that my fingers protest.

  “Focus, soldier.” A slap to my face has me rearing back.

  “What. The. Fuck?” I roar, and the next moment I am on my feet and my fingers are squeezing Hawke’s collar.

  He raises an eyebrow. “That’s what I thought.”

  “What?”

  “If you have enough fight left in you, maybe there’s one thing that can help.”

  “Oh yeah? And is it going to restore me back to my feet?”

  “Maybe.”

  “Huh?”

  “You remember the test drug that you were going to wait to try out on a subject?

  I stare. Fuck me. How did I forget? “I can try it out on myself.” I lurch to my feet and stagger forward, another step, and I almost keel over.

  But Hawke, the bastard, the motherfucker, my friend is here. He lifts my arm, slinging it over his shoulder. “Easy, Doc.”

  I don’t want to take his help, I don’t.

  But hell, I owe him one for reminding me of the antidote. The one that will help accelerate recovery from a complete burnout, the kind that I am suffering from now.

  “It’s okay to lean on me.”

  “That’s what Alice said, too,” I mutter.

  “She's sensible and kind and gorgeous.”

  I shoot him a sideways glance.

  "And entirely too good for you."

  I snarl.

  “Not that I noticed or anything.”

  “No, you are already pussywhipped by a girl half your age.” I smirk.

  “Fifteen years.”

  “What?”

  “I am fifteen years older than her.” He firms his lips.

  “You trying to convince me or yourself?”

  He tosses his head. “We weren’t talking about me.”

  “Yeah, the antidote.” I snicker. “And by the way, thanks for helping me here.”

  “I’ll extract my due from you, dickwad. There’s just one thing, though.”

  “What?” I frown as he comes to a stop outside the exit.

  “Wish you’d cover your ass before flashing the rest of the world.”

  Cold air rushes over my butt. I look down and realize I am wearing a hospital gown gaping at the back. Just my fucked-up luck.

  I step away from Hawke and hold on to the doorframe for support. “I’ll get the antidote. You grab me some clothes. Meet me back at the lab.”

  37

  Alice

  “You should let me go; I am no good to you.”

  I look at the stage. I am standing in the wings, my knees all but trembling, and isn’t this a familiar nightmare?

  Me,
surrounded by the upturned faces of men all out for just one thing. To pillage. To take.

  Only difference is that I have been showered and forced to wear a sheath that clings to every part of my body as I walk. I may as well be naked for all the protection the cloth provides. But it is meant to reveal more than hide.

  Waves of lust roll at me from the audience, and I flinch. I turn to Boris, wondering why the hell I am even bothering to point out the obvious. "Why am I still here? I am damaged goods after all."

  His jaw hardens. “Shut up.”

  “They are going to find out the truth eventually.” I jerk my chin toward the audience.

  “By then it will be too late; you’ll have played your role.”

  “Role? What role?” I swallow.

  He rocks back on his heels. “Nothing that is of consequence to you.”

  I move in closer. “Tell me.”

  The smell of rotting flesh deepens, and my stomach lurches. I can't be sick, not now. I swallow down the greasy taste in my mouth.

  “Who was that man?"

  Boris shifts his weight from foot to foot.

  "Are you working for him?”

  His features darken. "I work for no one."

  He snakes out his fist and catches me in my stomach. I double over, gasping, tears filling my eyes, and I blink them away. Bastard.

  I straighten and almost moan as the pain radiates out from my stomach. Bile sloshes up my throat and I swallow it back. "You heard Gabriel, he wants me untouched."

  Boris thrusts his face into mine. "I don't listen to everything Gabriel says."

  The rotting breath of his overwhelms me. I clamp down on the need to turn and scamper away. "Why are you so afraid of him?"

  Whatever my half-brother has become, those eyes of his belong to the boy I knew.

  "You are beginning to piss me off, human."

  Boris raises his hand and his fingers glow, he points them at me and fear grips my heart.

  Coldness coils in my chest.

  “If you kill me, Gabriel won't let you live either.” Actually I am not sure about that, but if...if he is my blood then he won't let me die.

  Boris' jaw tightens; he hesitates. Gotcha again. I peer up at him from under my eyelashes, “You can't ignore that."

  He drops his arms; the glow fades. The breath I had been unaware of holding rushes out. Then he grabs me by the long strands of my hair and yanks me to my feet. A cry catches in my throat. My vision falters, my heart hammers so fast I can hear the blood pounding in my ears. He's going to kill me. He is. Where are you, Doc? I reach inside and the mating bond in my chest is still silent. He’s still hurt, and perhaps he’s hiding from me; that’s the only reason I can’t sense his presence.

  Boris' lips curl.. “Slut.” He snarls. “All you women are the same. You are gagging for it, aren’t you? You want to be fucked, don’t you?”

  Only by Doc.

  "Do you want my cock, human?"

  No.

  “Suck my dick and I won't kill you.” Boris presses me down and I drop to my knees.

  Let me go. Get your hands off me. I scream the words in my head.

  My stomach clenches. My breath comes in pants. I can’t lie to save myself.

  I'll never let another touch me again, no one but Doc. I belong to him, only him.

  I squeeze my eyes shut, and every part of me freezes. My heart rate ratchets up; my throat closes. Coward. That’s what I am. Not able to face up to this monster. I have to do something. Anything. His hold on my neck tightens, and the oxygen to my lungs cuts off. I struggle and try to break free, and he chuckles.

  Another man stomps by, dragging a woman along with him, "You're up next." He jostles my legs as he passes.

  “Saved by the bell and all that." Boris chuckles. He hauls me up to my feet, up the steps. I stumble and he yanks me up, then shoves me onto the platform.

  I lurch forward, and the sheath that I am clad in clings to my legs outlining my every move.

  A spotlight falls on me, blinding my eyes. A roar sounds from the crowd.

  “I bid ten thousand.”

  Huh? Ten thousand what? I fling my arms around my waist, and my shoulders hunch. I want to run away and hide, but where…a whip slaps over my front, and pain licks over my skin. I straighten and snarl. Boris’ lips twist, and he raises his hand again, and I flinch, waiting for the slap to land on me. When Doc had spanked me, I’d loved it. I’d wanted more. It had turned me on, that edge of pleasure-pain rousing me to climax.

  But from anyone else, the pain only hurts. There is no pleasure in being touched by another, other than Doc.

  There is a difference between being hurt for pleasure and being hurt with malicious intent.

  Boris hurts to flaunt his power, to seem superior when really, he is the weak one. There is a gurgling sound, and I look up and…blink. What the…? My mouth opens and closes.

  It’s Gabriel. He’s grabbed the whip, its lash looped around Boris hand, and he yanks at it. Boris goes stumbling and falls in front of me. The crowd screams.

  Yeah, that’s what they want. They have come to bid on a virgin, but hell, they’ll take anything, anyone’s blood, even of the man who’s been supplying them with victims.

  Gabriel lets go of the whip, and Boris springs up to his feet. “What the hell?”

  “Don’t tarnish the merchandise.” Gabriel jerks his chin in my direction, not bothering to even look at me.

  My throat closes. Had I misjudged him? Does he not care for who I am? I could have sworn I'd seen a flicker of recognition in his eyes, but maybe I was wrong. I tuck my arms into my sides trying to make myself as small as possible.

  Boris pauses and Gabriel angles his head, “Well, what are you waiting for? Continue with the auction."

  Boris waves his hand, and another voice from the audience screams, “Twenty thousand for the bitch.”

  I snarl. I am not a bitch or a whore or a cunt. Just a human here, people. A very angry one, and one who isn’t for sale either. I need to do something, say something. What?

  Gabriel stalks off the stage, and my muscles tense. Maybe he is my half-sibling, but right now, he's not acting very brotherly, is he?

  Okay so maybe he has a plan or something, but he could have shared that with me, eh? I toss back my hair. I am tired of waiting for someone to rescue me...Face it, I am on my own, and about to be auctioned off, and damn if I am going to take this lying down.

  I step up and around Boris. Walking to the front of the stage, I raise my palm and the crowd quietens. Sweat beads my brow. I can do this. Do this. I draw in a breath then hold up my head. “I am not a virgin.”

  38

  Doc

  The fuck is she doing? I rush up the aisle that cuts between the audience that has fallen silent. Does she have a death wish?

  I had managed to get to the antidote and injected myself with a double dose—yeah, okay, not advisable. But what-fucking-ever. Desperate times and all that.

  I'd teleported out without waiting for Hawke. No way was I going to endanger the life of my best friend. He is going to be pissed, but I'll cross that bridge when I get to it. I couldn't put him in danger too.

  Besides, my life doesn’t matter.

  I don’t care what harm the extra shot of concoction does to me. Within seconds, the fast-acting drug had pumped through my system and restored my energy levels.

  The antidote had amped up my recovery. My cells had seemed to rejuvenate, and my Fae healing powers had surged to seal up every last scratch on my body…everything except that hollowness in my chest where the fledgling mating bond had begun to form—something I didn’t want to examine too closely.

  The fiery ball of heat throbbed, reassuring me that she was alive, and that was all that mattered. I had to keep the connection steady just until I got to her and rescued her.

  I had gotten her into this mess, and I would not stop until she was safe. I only have to get her out and back home safely, and then I can walk away. Yes, that�
��s what I intend to do.

  The crowd around me clatters to its feet, and I look ahead and almost stumble. She stands there with the light flowing over her, bathing her in its glow. The white sheath—What is she wearing?—is almost transparent.

  The glow illuminates her curves. The jut of her breast, the flare of her hips, the hollow between her legs…she has nothing on under that.

  The bastards put her in that outfit knowing full well that it would reveal her assets, show her in the best possible way. Not that the crowd needs any goading.

  They surge to their feet and move forward. Someone tackles me from behind, and I fling off the man only for another body to hit me, and then another and…

  “What…the fuck?” I fling away the intruders, but more keep coming.

  There is a pounding of footsteps, then a throng of people running toward us…not us…her. I swivel around to face the stage where she stands hands out, almost angelic in the way the light halos her head.

  A man dressed in pants and button down shirt steps up to her.

  “Boris,” I race forward. My heart hammers, adrenaline spikes my blood.

  “You want this?” Boris howls at the crowds. The motherfucker walks behind her, grabs the collar of her sheath, and tears it off. “Come and get it then. She’s spoiled goods; she belongs to whoever gets to her first.”

  A wave of heat…sheer avarice ripples through the audience.

  Then a burst of noise lashes further as all those sitting spring to their feet. They want her. They will tear into her, and not leave anything left of her…“NO.” I howl.

  Something inside tears at me, wanting out, wanting to release… My chest expands, my biceps bulge, and the tips of my ears tingle.

  Something coiled inside of me expands.

  Heat surges up my chest and ripples up my throat. I open my mouth, and the flames pour out.

  The fire burns clean through the men clogging the path. Some scream, their clothes and their hair on fire, and roll off. The aroma of burning flesh fills the air.

  The crowd falls back and I race toward the stage.

  The telekinetic energy inside me rumbles. I draw up the bluish flame with the green sparks then hurl it toward the two figures on stage. The fire streams a trail of light behind and encloses her. I reach the stage and open my arms as her burning body collapses.